LANSING, Mich. (AP) (2/13/2019) – Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wants Michigan to be the 17th state to adopt a hands-free driving law that restricts the use of mobile devices while driving.

The Democrat got behind the newly introduced legislation in her State of the State speech Tuesday night. Texting while driving is prohibited, but other uses of phones are allowed.

Whitmer says “you cannot navigate the road if you are looking at your phone.”

Here is what Whitmer said during her State of the State address about adopting a hands-free driving law:

Car crashes are the number one killer of our young people. I recently met Steve Kiefer, who told me about his son Mitchel – a 2016 graduate of Detroit Catholic Central, and a member of the state championship hockey team. Mitchel was a freshman at MSU when he was tragically killed by a distracted driver on I-96. The family formed the Kiefer Foundation to carry on Mitchel’s legacy and end distracted driving – and they’re already making important progress. I’ve got to tell you, there is nothing more amazing to me than parents who channel the loss of their child into a cause that helps other people’s kids.